Guardrails are commonly used at construction sites to prevent access to certain areas. Guardrails commonly provide a physical and visual boundary for construction workers. Guardrails placed along the boundary of an elevated construction site can protect workers from falling or becoming seriously injured.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OHSA) regulations 29 C.F.R. 1910.23, 29 C.F.R. 1926.501, and others, describe requirements for fall protection and fall protection systems. Under OHSA regulations, guardrails must be built to withstand, without failure, 200 pounds (890 N) of inward and outward force. Guardrails must also have a height of 42 inches (1.1 m), plus or minus 3 inches (8 cm).
Wooden guardrails provide an inexpensive way to create a boundary. Wooden guardrails are typically assembled at the construction site with available materials (such as 2×4 lumber). However, assembly and disassembly of the wooden guardrails can be tedious and time-consuming. Wooden guardrails are typically heavy and/or cumbersome, and may require more than worker to assembly and disassemble. Wooden guardrails also have a limited useable lifetime, as the material is prone to weathering, degradation, and wear over time. Due to the variability in the type of wood used, type of equipment (e.g. fasteners), and method of construction, wooden guardrails in practice may not be capable of withstanding the minimum force required by OHSA regulations. Therefore, there is a need for a reusable construction guardrail having a uniform construction such that, when assembled, the reusable construction guardrail predictably meets certain OHSA standards.
Reusable guardrails are also available. Examples of reusable guardrail components can be found, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,867,997 to Hyslop, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,372 to Kostelecky, U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,451 to Reichel, U.S. Pat. No. 5,896,944 to McMillian, and U.S. Pat. No. 8,132,792 to Penis. However, these guardrail components may be cumbersome to use to allow for quick assembly and disassembly of the guardrail. Some of these guardrail components have features that may pose a tripping or falling hazard. Some of these guardrail components cannot be reduced in size, which makes it difficult to handle and/or transport. Therefore, there is a need for a reusable construction guardrail having features that aid in easier and faster assembly and disassembly. There is also a need for a reusable construction guardrail that is easily reduced in size and easily transported. Additionally, there is a need for a reusable construction guardrail that meets all of the above needs while adhering to OHSA standards.